Dawn's Farewell (3)
"This is poisoned."
Captain Bibian recoiled in surprise, jerking her hand back.
"How do you know...?"
"You can tell at a glance. If it were a self-defense dagger, they wouldn't hide it behind such thick lining. And it's too thin for anything besides assassination—it looks more like a needle than a dagger."
"You're right, now that you put it that way. Secure this as evidence."
At Captain Bibian's command, the guards carefully lifted the dagger with gloved hands.
I watched them, lost in thought. I didn't say it out loud, but this guy was an Espion from the capital. Secret agents who handled all sorts of dirty work—assassinations, kidnappings, terrorism. That merchant ID from the Avignon Union was fake. The calluses on his hands, their position, and the way he'd hidden the dagger made it obvious.
That's why I hadn't said a word to Captain Bibian. Even if I'd cleared the first playthrough and possessed this body, I couldn't predict the political fallout from something like this.
I stood and surveyed the surroundings. Judging by the griffon's footprints and the direction of the horse's hooves, they'd clearly intended to enter the city along this road. Probably spotted the griffon circling a hundred meters up ahead, made a desperate sprint for the city, and got taken from behind.
What business could an Espion have here in Schlessi? Hiding a poisoned needle like that suggested an assassination target in the city. If so, who?
The first person who came to mind was me. The true hero who'd slain the Great Demon, the one who knew all the secrets. Maybe they'd tried playing nice at first, then decided to silence me for good with an assassin.
But why now? I hadn't done anything to draw the Empire's attention lately. I'd been quietly running the guild here.
Hmm... There was one person who came to mind, though...
Turning toward the city, I heard Captain Bibian ask, "By the way, Mr. Leonar. What's a mountain griffon? Is it different from a regular griffon?"
"It's way more annoying to deal with. They nest on cliffs and never touch the ground except when snatching prey or returning to the nest."
"I see. Then how about requesting a ballista unit? They could intercept it in the air..."
"Bolts are too slow to hit them. Do you have any mages in the border guard by any chance?"
"No mages. They're too rare..."
A flush of embarrassment colored Captain Bibian's face. Even for a duchy border guard, it must have been shameful not to have even one mage on staff.
"If you absolutely need one, I could put out a call, but I can't guarantee anything."
"No need. It'd be nice, but I can handle it without. I'll take care of this one myself."
"Thank you, Mr. Leonar."
"Now, about the reward..."
As we got into the real negotiation over payment, Captain Bibian's expression darkened considerably. I wasn't as good as Leana, but I had some confidence in haggling. She was a soldier, clueless about this stuff, so she kept getting played until we settled on the amount I wanted.
"Wrap things up here and head back, everyone. And until I take down that griffon, keep people from leaving the city as much as possible."
"Understood. Everyone, recover the bodies and return. I'll go with Mr. Leonar."
"Pardon...? Captain, you should head back too. Why are you coming along?"
"Regulations require a supervisor for requests like this. That's why I went with you to Elodi Village last time."
"Fair enough, but does it have to be you, Captain? A mountain griffon isn't like a mage. It won't listen to reason, and you could actually die. Better to send another guard..."
Captain Bibian shook her head.
"The reward is too high for anyone below captain rank."
"Does rank change based on the payout? If it's regulations, I guess there's no helping it..."
She wouldn't be much help and it'd be easier without her wandering around. But when the client's this insistent, what can you do? Customer service is the basics of service work.
"Fine, come along then. But you have to follow my lead exactly."
"Don't worry. I'm not about to argue with a Demon Hunter when we're out monster hunting."
While the guards recovered the bodies, I pulled a map from the pouch on my wrist and spread it out. The footprints and corpse suggested an 90% chance it was a mountain griffon. I'd need to confirm the size and details up close, but assuming it was...
The likely nesting spot would be around here. I might find more evidence on the way.
"Let's move out."
Captain Bibian and I raced along the westward path.
* * * * *
We rode hard and arrived at a lakeside. The name on the map read Lac Miroir—Mirror Lake. The sky reflected perfectly on the surface, just like a mirror. Across the peaceful shore, where fish occasionally leaped, loomed a sheer cliff.
It was a spur of the Lumiere Mountains curving sharply to meet the lake—steep and dizzyingly high. Grass and small plants grew in the cracks, but nothing looked sturdy enough to climb.
"Is this the place?"
"High possibility. We'll stable the horses here and search on foot."
I hid the horses in a thicket of trees. If the griffon killed them, we'd be walking back.
"Use this."
I pulled a net from the saddlebag and handed it to Captain Bibian. It was covered in ragged cloth scraps, looking like a filthy rag at first glance.
"What's this?"
"A camouflage net to make it hard to spot from the air. Without it, you might die without even knowing what hit you."
Basically a ghillie suit. Griffons had great eyesight but low intelligence, so this would keep us hidden.
"Ditch the sword. It's useless."
Captain Bibian, awkwardly drawing her blade under the net, sheepishly sheathed it again.
Wearing the nets like hoods with just our faces exposed, we began scouting the lakeside.
"Something suspicious here."
Moments later, Captain Bibian bent down and picked something up. A massive gray feather, nearly a foot long. Unmistakably suspicious. It was from a mountain griffon—an adult, judging by the length and quill thickness.
An adult coming this close to the city to hunt humans. It had to be nesting and raising chicks. Even the fiercest monsters avoided cities under normal circumstances. Humans were the lords of creation here, just like back home—weak individually, but capable of slaying dragons when organized.
Coming within ten minutes of the city meant instinctual parental love was the only explanation.
Griffon chicks grew fast in a short time, devouring massive amounts of food.
"Nest must be nearby."
"Really?"
Squinting, I spotted jagged rocks and large branches clustered atop the cliff. That was the nest.
It was daytime now, prime hunting time for mountain griffons. Males and females usually shared chick duty, so at least one was probably there. Best to climb up, kill whatever was inside, then wait for the other to return.
"Captain, see the nest up there?"
"Ah, yeah. Something sticking out."
"That's it. I'm climbing up, so stay here and guard the horses."
"You're scaling the cliff?!"
"No, we'll loop around to the ridge behind it, obviously."
I pointed to the sloped path leading to the cliff, and Captain Bibian nodded with a resolute expression.
"Lead the way."
"You're coming too? I said stay here."
"No, I need to confirm it myself."
She was a real stickler for procedure.
"You up for major this year or something?"
No answer. Figured. She was risking her life for a promotion.
Captain Bibian and I, cloaked in our camouflage, circled the lake widely to reach the ridge. What started as a gentle slope grew steeper. Her breathing grew heavier behind me.
This was why mountain griffons were such a pain. At least the duchy's terrain was tame; elsewhere, we might've been climbing for two days straight.
A mage would've been perfect. I could've sat by the lake, blasted the nest with spells, or shot the flyer out of the sky. But that'd require a top-tier mage, who wouldn't join a guild anyway.
No point dwelling on it. Pining for unclimbable trees was just self-torture. If Orlean hadn't been a lunatic, I might've sweet-talked him into staying with the guild, but he was too dangerous to keep close.
Regrettable, all around.
Then, suddenly, a strange vibration came from my inner pocket. Where I'd stashed Dawn's Farewell.